Almost nothing certain is known about Tiruvalluvar. Scholars date the Tirukkural anywhere from the first century BCE to the fifth century CE. Later tradition says he was a weaver of Mylapore in Chennai, married to the devoted Vasuki, and tells many stories of his wisdom and patience. Hindu, Jain and other communities have all claimed him as their own.
அகர முதல எழுத்தெல்லாம் ஆதி பகவன் முதற்றே உலகு“As the letter A is the first of all letters, so the Primal God is first of the world.”Tirukkural, couplet 1
What remains is his book — short, clear and universal — which Tamils call Tamil Marai, the Tamil Veda, and Ulaga Podhumarai, the scripture common to all the world.
The Tirukkural
The Kural has 1,330 couplets, called kurals, in 133 chapters of ten. It is divided into three books corresponding to three of the four aims of life: Aram (virtue, dharma), Porul (wealth and statecraft, artha) and Inbam (love, kama). Each couplet is just seven words in two lines, as memorable as a proverb.
Wisdom for every life
The Kural speaks of gratitude, truthfulness, non-violence and vegetarianism, of hospitality and patience, of the duties of rulers and ministers, of friendship and education, and of the joys and quarrels of lovers. It names no sect and no particular god, which has helped people of all faiths treasure it. It has been translated into more than forty languages, and Tolstoy and Gandhi admired it.
Remembered in stone
A 133-foot statue of Tiruvalluvar, one foot for each chapter, stands on a rock off Kanyakumari beside the Vivekananda Rock Memorial; it was unveiled on 1 January 2000. The Valluvar Kottam in Chennai, built like a temple chariot, has all 1,330 couplets carved in granite.
How they are remembered
Tamil Nadu celebrates Thiruvalluvar Day during the Pongal festival in January, and the Tamil calendar's Thiruvalluvar era counts years from his traditional date. Couplets from the Kural appear on Tamil Nadu buses and in every Tamil schoolbook.
Ekatmata Stotra · Stanza 15
Named in Stanza 15 of the Ekatmata Stotra — from Buddha and Mahāvīra to Basaveśvara.
बुद्धो जिनश्च गोरक्षो वल्लुवस्तिरुनामकः।
नायन्माराश्च आळ्वाराः कम्बन्बसवेश्वरौ तथा॥
Sources: Wikipedia: Valluvar · Wikipedia: Kural. Written afresh for The Hindu Book; corrections welcome at [email protected].
